(by Daniela Giammusso).
Preparations are underway at the
historic Capitolare Library in Verona for the 1,500th
anniversary on Tuesday of the precious Ursicino Code, the
document behind its claim to be the oldest in the world.
"The code takes its name from the Amanuensis friar who
transcribed the life of St Paul of Thebes and St Martin of
Tours, written by Sulpitius Severus in the fourth century,"
Library Prefect Bruno Fasani told ANSA.
The parchment manuscript contains the first semi-uncial
characters and touching scenes such as 'the dialogue between St
Martin and the Devil' describing the Father's mercy towards his
sinful Son.
Upon completing his task, Ursicino did not adhere to the
practice of the time and dated the tome.
"This code was completed in Verona on August 1, when the
illustrious Agapito was consul, during the tenth proclamation,
by Ursicino, reader of the Veronese church," he wrote.
This dates it to August 1, 517.
"The code, renowned throughout the world, is therefore
extremely valuable not only for its content, but also because it
attests to the fact that a scriptorium already existed in Verona
in that period, probably dating to the previous century if not
the end of the 4th century, and which produced various kinds of
texts," Fasani continued.
"This is why it is legitimate to claim that Verona's
Capitolare Library is the oldest existing library in the world,"
he added.
It predates the library at the St Catherine's Monastery in
Egypt's Sinai Peninsula (6th century), the abbey library of St
Gaul and the Salzburg library (7th-8th centuries).
Charlemagne sent his son Pepin to study here, and Dante
Alighieri and Francesco Petrarch subsequently also frequented
it.
Today, the Capitolare Library contains over 1,200
manuscripts, 245 incunabula, 2,500 16th-century volumes, 2,800
17th-century volumes and a further 70,000 books.
"We have digitized them for academics, but people come from
all over the world to see the originals, including President
(Sergio) Mattarella and (Giorgio) Napolitano and Pope Benedict
XVI and John Paul II," Fasani said.
The Gaius Codex, the only existing transcript of ancient
Roman law, the Veronese Riddle, the most ancient code XXVIII of
St Augustine's De Civitate Dei are among the other important
works also conserved in the library.
The aim now is to open it up to the public as a museum.
To this end, a crowdfunding campaign will be launched in
September and the first exhibition on Medieval writing is
planned for the end of the year.
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